Analysis of Clear-Water Scour at Bridge Contractions in Cohesive Soils

Author(s):  
Oktay Güven ◽  
Joel G. Melville ◽  
John E. Curry

A new, simplified theory for the analysis of the time-dependent development of the depth of scour at bridge contractions in cohesive soils under clear-water conditions is presented. The new theory is an extension of the clear-water scour theory for a long contraction currently used for non-cohesive bed materials. It is based on the “scour rate in cohesive soils” concepts introduced recently by Briaud and his colleagues at Texas A&M University. A description of the simplifying assumptions made in the development of the theory and several applications with different bed soils and flow conditions are presented to illustrate the effects of various assumptions on the estimate of the scour depth. Limitations of the theory are also discussed. The results indicate that a very long time may be required in some cohesive soils for the scour depth to reach its maximum value for a given flow condition. The results also indicate that significant differences in the estimate of the scour depth may occur depending on the assumptions made about the behavior of the water surface elevation and the total head in the contraction during the development of the scour in the contraction.

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 457-472 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmad Sharafati ◽  
Ali Tafarojnoruz ◽  
Zaher Mundher Yaseen

Abstract Scouring around the piers, especially in cohesive bed materials, is a fully stochastic phenomenon and a reliable prediction of scour depth is still a challenging concern for bridge designers. This study introduces a new stochastic model based on the integration of Group Method of Data Handling (GMDH) and Generalized Likelihood Uncertainty Estimation (GLUE) to predict scour depth around piers in cohesive soils. The GLUE approach is developed to estimate the related parameters whereas the GMDH model is used for the prediction target. To assess the adequacy of the GMDH-GLUE model, the conventional GMDH and genetic programming (GP) models are also developed for evaluation. Several statistical performance indicators are computed over both the training and testing phases for the prediction accuracy validation. Based on the attained numerical indicators, the proposed GMDH-GLUE model revealed better predictability performance of pier scour depth against the benchmark models as well as several gathered literature studies. To provide an informative comparison among the proposed techniques (i.e. GMDH-GLUE, GMDH, and GP models), an improvement index () is employed. Results indicated that the GMDH-GLUE model achieved = 6% and = 3%, demonstrating satisfying performance improvement in comparison with the previously proposed GMDH model.


Author(s):  
Cansu Özyaman ◽  
Cahit Yerdelen ◽  
Ebru Eris ◽  
Rasoul Daneshfaraz

Abstract This study presents the effect of different parameters on scouring process around spur dikes. Our research group's stated objective was to evaluate the effects of sediment gradation, flow depth, spur angle and spur length on scouring process. Since most existing studies generally employed uniform sediment; in this study uniform and non-uniform sediment were selected. Experiments were made in a rectangular open channel in uniform flow conditions. Results showed that the effect of the spur dike length and the orientation angle on sediment scour varies with the type of sediment used. Scour volumes were 40% greater in uniform sediments than in non-uniform sediments. Measured scour depth was maximum at spurs perpendicular to the flow, whereas the scour volume was maximum at spurs directed upstream. The scour depth increased with an increase in the spur length; however, effect of spur length on scouring varied at a contraction rate of 0.29 for uniform sediments and 0.36 for non-uniform sediments. A multiple regression analysis was also performed, and four equations were suggested to predict the scour depth and scour volume. Comparisons were made with the literature equations applicable for clear-water scouring to check the suggested equation. Because of a wide range of contraction ratios considered in this study, the equations which considered the contraction effect yielded better estimates.


Author(s):  
Mark N. Landers ◽  
David S. Mueller

Field measurements of channel scour at bridges are needed to improve the understanding of scour processes and the ability to accurately predict scour depths. An extensive data base of pier-scour measurements has been developed over the last several years in cooperative studies between state highway departments, the Federal Highway Administration, and the U.S. Geological Survey. Selected scour processes and scour design equations are evaluated using 139 measurements of local scour in live-bed and clear-water conditions. Pier-scour measurements were made at 44 bridges around 90 bridge piers in 12 states. The influence of pier width on scour depth is linear in logarithmic space. The maximum observed ratio of pier width to scour depth is 2.1 for piers aligned to the flow. Flow depth and scour depth were found to have a relation that is linear in logarithmic space and that is not bounded by some critical ratio of flow depth to pier width. Comparisons of computed and observed scour depths indicate that none of the selected equations accurately estimate the depth of scour for all of the measured conditions. Some of the equations performed well as conservative design equations; however, they overpredict many observed scour depths by large amounts. Some equations fit the data well for observed scour depths less than about 3 m (9.8 ft), but significantly underpredict larger observed scour depths.


Author(s):  
José Correa ◽  
Paul Dütting ◽  
Felix Fischer ◽  
Kevin Schewior

A central object of study in optimal stopping theory is the single-choice prophet inequality for independent and identically distributed random variables: given a sequence of random variables [Formula: see text] drawn independently from the same distribution, the goal is to choose a stopping time τ such that for the maximum value of α and for all distributions, [Formula: see text]. What makes this problem challenging is that the decision whether [Formula: see text] may only depend on the values of the random variables [Formula: see text] and on the distribution F. For a long time, the best known bound for the problem had been [Formula: see text], but recently a tight bound of [Formula: see text] was obtained. The case where F is unknown, such that the decision whether [Formula: see text] may depend only on the values of the random variables [Formula: see text], is equally well motivated but has received much less attention. A straightforward guarantee for this case of [Formula: see text] can be derived from the well-known optimal solution to the secretary problem, where an arbitrary set of values arrive in random order and the goal is to maximize the probability of selecting the largest value. We show that this bound is in fact tight. We then investigate the case where the stopping time may additionally depend on a limited number of samples from F, and we show that, even with o(n) samples, [Formula: see text]. On the other hand, n samples allow for a significant improvement, whereas [Formula: see text] samples are equivalent to knowledge of the distribution: specifically, with n samples, [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], and with [Formula: see text] samples, [Formula: see text] for any [Formula: see text].


Author(s):  
Hikmat Hamid oglu Asadov ◽  
Sima Ajdar gizi Askerova

Pollution of sea waters is one of major attributes of coastal industrial centers and the norming of such emissions is one of major countermeasures. The assimilation capacity of sea waters is a major factor relevant at norming and planning of outflows into sea waters. At present time the synoptical method has been developed, which doesn’t require carrying out long time and repeated observing of the level of pollution of sea waters. This method has formed the basis for developing the integrated synoptical method for calculating sea water assimilation capacity. The suggested method provides for division of the sea waters into separated homogenous water masses. The aim of the study is to develop an inverse integrated synoptical method allowing synthesizing of such an optimum order for loading separate water masses with pollutants upon, at which the calculated total value of assimilation capacity would reach its maximum. The article shows the possibility of utilization of known synoptical method for determining assimilation capacity of sea waters in the inverse order, i.e. for calculating the maximum value of pollutant put into the fixed zone of sea waters, upon a condition of reaching the given amount of assimilation capacity and absence of essential negative effect on ecosystem. The task of calculating an optimum regime function of discrete type, upon which the integrated value of assimilation capacity would reach the maximum value, has been formulated. The solution of analogue equivalent of the formed optimization task is carried out using the Euler equation for a non-conditional variation optimization task, taking into account the accepted limitation condition. The recommendations on optimum loading of different sea water zones with determined type of pollutant have been given.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 27
Author(s):  
Amvrosios G. Georgiadis ◽  
Nikolaos D. Charisiou ◽  
Ioannis V. Yentekakis ◽  
Maria A. Goula

The removal of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) from gas streams with varying overall pressure and H2S concentrations is a long-standing challenge faced by the oil and gas industries. The present work focuses on H2S capture using metal–organic frameworks (MOFs), in an effort to shed light on their potential as adsorbents in the field of gas storage and separation. MOFs hold great promise as they make possible the design of structures from organic and inorganic units, but also, they have provided an answer to a long-time challenging issue, i.e., how to design extended structures of materials. Moreover, the functionalization of the MOF’s surface can result in increased H2S uptake. For example, the insertion of 1% of a fluorinated linker in MIL-101(Cr)-4F(1%) allows for enhanced H2S capture. Although noticeable efforts have been made in studying the adsorption capacity of H2S using MOFs, there is a clear need for gaining a deeper understanding in terms of their thermal conductivities and specific heats in order to design more stable adsorption beds, experiencing high exothermicity. Simply put, the exothermic nature of adsorption means that sharp rises in temperature can negatively affect the bed stability in the absence of sufficient heat transfer. The work presented herein provides a detailed discussion by thoroughly combining the existing literature on new developments in MOFs for H2S removal, and tries to provide insight into new areas for further research.


2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 331-343 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Ahmad ◽  
T. Mohamed ◽  
F. H. Ali ◽  
B. Yusuf

Laboratory data for local scour depth regarding the size of wide piers are presented. Clear water scour tests were performed for various pier widths (0.06, 0.076, 0.102, 0.14 and 0.165 m), two types of pier shapes (circular and rectangular) and two types of uniform cohesionless bed sediment (d50 = 0.23 and d50 = 0.80 mm). New data are presented and used to demonstrate the effects of pier width, pier shape and sediment size on scour depth. The influence of equilibrium time (te) on scouring processes is also discussed. Equilibrium scour depths were found to decrease with increasing values of b/d50. The temporal development of equilibrium local scour depth with new laboratory data is demonstrated for flow intensity V/Vc = 0.95. On the other hand, the results of scour mechanism have shown a significant relationship between normalized volume of scoured and deposited with pier width, b. The experimental data obtained in this study and data available from the literature for wide piers are used to evaluate predictions of existing methods.


2013 ◽  
Vol 67 (5) ◽  
pp. 1121-1128 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Najafzadeh ◽  
Gholam-Abbas Barani ◽  
Masoud Reza Hessami Kermani

In the present study, the Group Method of Data Handling (GMDH) network has been utilized to predict abutments scour depth for both clear-water and live-bed conditions. The GMDH network was developed using a Back Propagation algorithm (BP). Input parameters that were considered as effective variables on abutment scour depth included properties of sediment size, geometry of bridge abutments, and properties of approaching flow. Training and testing performances of the GMDH network were carried out using dimensionless parameters that were collected from the literature. The testing results were compared with those obtained using the Support Vector Machines (SVM) model and the traditional equations. The GMDH network predicted the abutment scour depth with lower error (RMSE (root mean square error) = 0.29 and MAPE (mean absolute percentage of error) = 0.99) and higher (R = 0.98) accuracy than those performed using the SVM model and the traditional equations.


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